Exposing Hamas

The Endowment for Middle East Truth hosted a recent phone seminar with Mosab Hassan Yousef, the oldest son of Sheikh Hassan Yousef, founding member and leader of Hamas.

More than 100 people took part as Yousef revealed the inner workings of Hamas, shared his eye-witness account of Hamas' brutal treatment of its own people, and talked about the current Gaza war.

"Hamas' political goal is to build an Islamic State on the rubble of Palestine," Mosab Hassan Yousef said.

"Hamas hijacked the Palestinian cause — and it spread like a cancer," he said, "and now everyone is under their control."

In defending Israel over the mounting civilian causalities in the latest conflict, Yousef said Israel had "no choice."

"This is a time for all of us to be clear and firm. How many wars are we going to have before we fix the problem," he said. "Hamas doesn't care about Palestinians. They have killed hundreds of them. They even killed them in the mosques.

"Hamas is looking for a short war … they enjoy international recognition," he said. "There was no way to avoid civilian causalities."

Mosab Hassan Yousef was born in Ramallah in 1978. Once an integral part of the terrorist group, He was imprisoned several times by the Shin Bet. While in an Israeli prison, Yousef was approached about becoming a spy for the Shin Bet. Initially, he accepted the offer with the idea that he would betray Israel and use the role to protect his father and family. Later, he used the position to save both Israeli and Palestinian lives.

Yousef worked as a double agent within Hamas for nearly 10 years. He became a vital intelligence asset for the Israeli government while serving side-by-side with his father within the upper ranks of Hamas.

"I did some deep thinking while a prisoner in Israel," he said. "I saw as lot of corruption in the Palestinian cause. The Palestinians should begin to realize that their leadership is to blame."

Taking questions from seminar participants, someone stated that "compared to other terrorist groups" Hamas seems to be more disciplined.

"Hamas is the most dangerous of all radical Islamist groups — and the same can be said for the Muslim Brotherhood," he said. "Hamas doesn't only have a military wing — they also have a political wing. If Hamas wins the Gaza war, the Muslim Brotherhood will turn to using the same tactics in Egypt. I don't see the Muslim Brotherhood continuing to take these hits in Egypt and remain silent."

Yousef was asked what else Israel could do to further protect itself.

"I don't think this is the end of the war in Gaza. I think Israel is probably up to something more creative," he said. "Hamas has killed any chance of a two-state solution. But I see this will escalate. We hope in the meantime, the Palestinians realize who Hamas is."

"Any time you have an inside look, compounded by the eldest son of the group's founder, verifying all which we know, and perhaps [what] some folks wish to ignore, it is an opportunity that should be maximized and brought to the general public," he said.

However, Ciment calls attention to a "more ferocious" group than Hamas which is currently stealing the limelight.

"Perhaps most importantly is the much more ferocious Islamic State group who is galvanizing power and money and rolling across Syria, Iraq with a brutality of cold blooded genocide not seen in many centuries," he said. "Christians and fellow Muslims are being beheaded and their heads paraded as trophies.

"Hamas, al Qaeda, Iran and all Islamic terrorists have been unmasked by the very recent developments of this terrifying force of sheer evil gaining territory, power and money in the Middle East," he said. "Perhaps now the world will begin to see things a bit more clearly and stop callously equating Israel with these monsters who seek her destruction."